Chapter 69: Yahagi

"The materials I got back from the bookstore; take a look if you have time."

Late at night, Tang Wen returned to the shipyard, handed the paper-wrapped documents to Tang Yi, and let out a deep yawn.

Buying a computer wasn't an impulsive decision; the Pentium era meant the time when the internet would truly connect the world was not far off, and various software would spring up like mushrooms after rain.

In this era of shifting winds and clouds, a computer at least meant an extremely convenient channel for external communication.

But the slightly troublesome part was the internet; when he went to the Post and Telecommunications Bureau to ask about connecting the shipyard, the clerk directly stated that confirmation from higher-level supervisors was needed.

There was no way; Dawan Village was too remote, and pulling network cables from so far away was too much effort.

Even connecting every village to television hasn't been realized yet; connecting villages to the internet has absolutely no foundation.

Tang Wen planned to find the township head again when he had time to figure something out; having an internet connection but being unable to use it truly made one's heart itch.

However, the Hashirigata still had less than two days until completion; even if connected, it would have to wait until after setting sail.

According to the original plan, once the Hashirigata was completed, weapons had to be dismantled immediately, requiring another day of work, so it could set sail in about three days.

After the Hashirigata was launched, it couldn't depart immediately; it first had to rush to Echenggang to fill up with heavy oil.

This salvage journey, even by the shortest route, was nearly 2,200 nautical miles, while the Hashirigata's maximum range was only 2,500 nautical miles.

Moreover, the Hashirigata could hold a full 170 tons of heavy oil; relying solely on what oil tankers could carry was simply not enough, so they had to refuel a little bit first, then go to Echenggang to refuel themselves.

The good news was that heavy oil wasn't just used for steam turbines; some large cargo ships' diesel engines could also burn heavy oil, and Echenggang had considerable reserves.

According to the information provided by Huang Dongfu, docking to refuel required paying fuel fees and a bunch of port usage fees, totaling two hundred thousand...

This was still a thousand-ton small boat; if the Hornet were to set sail, one couldn't even dare to imagine the cost.

Although fuel could also be replenished through the system, that would cost 8,500 silver coins, nearly four hundred thousand, which still made Tang Wen's heart ache.

He originally wanted to have Halsey command the Hashirigata, but who knew that M-series captains could only command warships of the corresponding series and couldn't command R-series warships.

Otherwise, the 40% fuel fee reduction from a level 10 captain would have saved seventy or eighty thousand, a huge sum of money.

No wonder the navy had no money; the fuel costs for a collective sortie of those thousand-ton destroyers were enough to give one a headache; compared to the air force and army, they were indeed "burning money."

While Tang Wen was pained over the fuel costs for the voyage, Tang Yi had already started rapidly flipping through the materials purchased from Huaxin Bookstore.

Compared to borrowing from Old Man Yan's collection, the materials purchased from Huaxin Bookstore were much more up-to-date.

Besides books, there was a thick bundle of magazines, journals, and newspapers mixed inside, all related to ships.

Tang Yi hadn't flipped through many pages of the magazine before he found useful information.

【... April 7, 1995, a civilian organization in Kashima held a 50th-anniversary memorial ceremony for the sinking of the Yamato in the area where the Yamato sank, and retrieved a fragment belonging to the Yamato via divers.

Since ten years ago, this organization has been dedicated to raising funds to salvage the Yamato. According to a person in charge of the organization: The Yamato is an indelible spiritual symbol; they have repeatedly called on the public and the government to contribute funds together...】

As a giant ship that countless BB fans couldn't get around, the significance of the Yamato far exceeded that of other warships, and memorial activities and salvage plans emerged one after another.

So much so that Tang Yi easily found information about its sinking location; this magazine specially introduced last year's large-scale memorial activities and even took quite a few photos.

Compared to the Oak, the information on the Yamato was simply excessively comprehensive; there was absolutely no difficulty, just follow the public coordinates and go there.

When he told Tang Wen about this discovery, the latter's face also broke into a smile.

If all sunken ships had such enthusiasts, it would be wonderful; they would be a free source of intelligence.

Anyway, the Yamato wasn't salvaged even decades later; if I salvage it, it counts as making use of waste.

As for the enthusiasts discovering the ship is gone, that must be due to nature's magical decomposition effect.

But just thinking about the huge fuel cost of two hundred thousand made Tang Wen's heart ache again; refueling twice would consume one Imperial, four Santanas; it was simply too expensive to bear.

Should I continue opening boxes, trying to draw an R-series captain?

Although he gained a few thousand experience points at Dongsha last time, Tang Wen had opened boxes ten times in succession, spending a thousand already.

Once he drew a level 10 captain, Halsey; once he drew 100 gold coins; the rest were all silver coins, coal, and buff flags, paint schemes, and the like; the silver coins added up to nearly thirty thousand silver coins, worth over a million.

But considering experience was extremely difficult to obtain, the silver coins dropped weren't very cost-effective.

Tang Wen hesitated for a long while, thinking that there would be rewards after completing the newbie quest, and finally decided to try.

It was now nearly 12 o'clock, equivalent to having two chances.

【Experience -100, Obtained Supply Crate *1】

There were no flashy special effects, only a simple box-opening animation; the result was a pile of coal.

【Obtained SM Flag *10】

【SM Flag: "I Accept Speed Test" (Ship Speed +5%)】

Ten small flags could make the 19-knot Hashirigata run at 20 knots; better than nothing, I suppose.

Tang Wen took a deep breath, wiped his face with a towel, and stared at the clock as it passed 12 o'clock.

【Experience -100, Obtained Supply Crate *1】

"Open!"

Perhaps because the previous box had set a baseline, this time the familiar golden light finally appeared before his eyes.

A dazzling flash of light passed, and a ship model and a bust of a person floated out of the opened box.

【Obtained V-Class Cruiser Yahagi, Obtained R-Series Level 6 Commander Kimura Susumu】

【Yahagi: Third ship of the Agano-class light cruisers, launched in 1943.

Dimensions: Length 174.5 meters, Width 15.2 meters, Draft 5.6 meters;

Displacement: Standard displacement 6,652 tons, Full load displacement 7,710 tons;

Boilers: 6 boilers, 100,000 horsepower, Maximum speed 35.3 knots;

Main guns: 3 twin 152mm main guns;

Secondary guns: 2 twin 76.2mm anti-aircraft guns, 8 triple 25mm Type 96 anti-aircraft guns, single 13.2mm Type 93 anti-aircraft machine guns;

Torpedoes: 2 quadruple 610mm torpedo launchers;

Special Consumables: 2 seaplanes, Type 21 radar;】

【Kimura Susumu: R-Series Level 6 Commander, No special skills】

【The warship and commander have been stored in your port.】

【"??"】

The last high-tier supply crate contained a Level 10 commander; this one comes with a Level 5 cruiser and a Level 6 commander.

A Level 6 commander is excellent; it reduces warship consumption by 26.5% and saves a great deal on fuel costs.

But why give me a cruiser? The port only has a shed built.

Tang Wen couldn't wait for anything else; he hurriedly got into the car with Tang Yi and headed for the port—there were still construction crews nearby!

Although the construction crews had long gone to sleep at night, who could know if anyone was wandering around blindly in the middle of the night?

The jeep barreled recklessly toward Dawan Port; from far away, Tang Wen already saw the silhouette of the Yahagi.

Even though it was night, the Yahagi, equipped with its commander, was in operation; the warship's searchlights and various lights were all on, and the 170-meter-long warship in the port looked like a floating building, faintly illuminating its majestic outline.

The 7,000-ton Yahagi was about the same size as a Type 052D, even slightly longer, comparable to a city at sea.

MD, how can this be hidden!